


The road to Pavv

by EverytimeIDoSomethingStupid (kingkongkitty)



Series: The story of a cleric [3]
Category: None - Fandom
Genre: D&D, OC, Other, wheelie bin of shame
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-06
Updated: 2016-09-06
Packaged: 2018-08-13 12:06:40
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,549
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7976230
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kingkongkitty/pseuds/EverytimeIDoSomethingStupid
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>This is the third little bit of backstory for my half-elf cleric Filegedhiel. Hope you enjoy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	The road to Pavv

Fil had enough gold to last her for a while in food, but she was foraging instead of going into towns. She didn’t know if the elves were looking for her, so she was staying away from civilization. She knew she’d have enough money for a horse when she got to a larger town, to help her move faster, and a little money for some dried rations, but at the minute she was living off nuts and berries.

She moved quickly, not bothering to be stealthy. After all, there was no one around to see her, and her dark clothes meant she blended in with the shadows, so only people paying attention would be likely to spot her.

At night she would hang her bag up on a tree branch and curl up a few meters away from it under her cloak. It was too lumpy to use as a pillow, and when she hung it up it meant it wouldn’t get drenched in puddles if it rained, and wouldn’t fall and hit her as it was a decent distance from her.

She slept surprisingly well, especially after living in luxury for several years, but the rough floor to sleep on was reminiscent of her childhood bed and she slept better than she had in a while, especially after days of hard travel, the weariness only really hitting her once she sat down to rest.

She didn’t dream, to exhausted too, and woke after a few hours of rest to hoarse voices whispering to each other. She lay still, eyes squeezed shut as she focused on the words.

“Is this all?” There was the sound of gold coins rubbing against each other heavy fabric hitting the ground, a bag being shaken out. “I guess we can sell the clothes for a decent price, or use them ourselves.”

“But that can’t be it.” The second voice was higher, tinged with panic and accompanied by the sound of the bag being shaken again. “She’ll have more, I guess we’ll have to ask her nicely.”

Fil shifted slightly, the dull pain against her wrists alerting her to the fact she’d been tied up. She winced. These clearly weren’t amateur thieves, or they had some common sense. EIther option didn’t bode well.

“Oi, girly.” The front of her dress was grabbed, roughly pulling her upright. “Where’s the rest of your gold? There’s only eighty pieces here.”

Fil’s eyes widened in shock at the sight of the heavily scarred goliath standing over her, her heart rate kicking up as she started to panic, stuttering out her answer. “That’s all I have.”

“Liar.” There was a fast movement and then pain exploded over the right side of her face, Fil’s eye starting to swell from the punch. “Where is it?!”

That’s all I have, I promise!” She tried to struggle away but the knots were tight around her wrists, and any attempt to kick at him was blocked by how he’d crouched over her.

The calloused pair of hands pulled her up, the cold sharp sensation of a blade suddenly pressed to her throat as a woman’s voice rang out. “I say we cut her a little, scare the truth out of her.” The blade moved, pressing against her cheek and with a quick movement split the skin, warm blood starting to trickle down Fil’s face.

“Please don’t!” Tears started to run down her face, pain and panic taking over her as she pleaded with them. “I’m running away.”

“Away from what?” The woman’s voice was more curious now, and with a nod to her companion the blade was moved from her face and tossed aside.

“An arranged marriage to the Ironfist dwarves.” The hands fisted in the front of her dress tightened in surprise.

“Wait, you’re the kid the elves are trying to find?” Fil nodded, sniffing as she did so, hating herself for the twin tracks of salt running down her face. The goliath pushed her away and she hit the ground heavily, breath leaving her in one big huff, winding her temporarily. The two thieves moved to stand about ten meters away, voices lowered, but her half elven ears could pick their conversation up easily.

“How much are they offering again?” The man spoke quickly, voice low and slightly hoarse. A blade was dancing between his fingers as he spoke. “Thyelian’s a good few days of travel away. How do we know it’ll be worth it?”

“1000 gold for information to find her. We need the money Ollie. Think of what we can do with 1000 gold pieces.” The woman tilted her head as she spoke, formulating a plan. “What if we take her stuff, send her on her way and then tell the elves we’ve seen her? Then we’ll get plenty of gold.”

The goliath shook his head, tucking the blade away and pulling out a second one, checking the balance. “We’ll get more if we take her to them.”

“There’s no guarantee. Those high elves are slippery. They’ve not promised a reward for the girl, just information about her whereabouts.”

“Then we’ll go with your plan.” The two of them nodded with satisfaction, before walking back up to FIl, who was slightly less panicked now she knew they had no intention to kill her immediately.

“Look kid, you have two options.” The woman knelt before her, slitting the rope holding her wrists together with a wickedly sharp dagger. “We take your stuff and you go unharmed, or we take you back to Thyelian and claim the reward for you. Either way, we’ll get money.”

The goliath - Ollie - nodded behind her, eyes narrowed as he focused, making sure she wouldn’t try anything. “And where did you say you were headed?”

“To the docks. I’m headed to Pavv.”

“To get to the rest of your family?” The rope was being coiled up neatly before it was tossed to the man. The woman backed off slowly and Fil shifted, feeling the pain in her face starting to dull to more of an ache.

“They’re dead.” Fil moved to stand, keeping her movements slow as not to startle them. “I’m just trying to survive at the minute. Like you are.”

“How old are you?”

Fil rolled her shoulders slightly. They were going to ache tomorrow that was for sure but it was better to be a bit achey than dead. “I’m eleven.”

The woman shot a glance at Ollie. “Gods , she’s just a kid.”

His expression became a fraction more compassionate and he riffled through his bag, pulling out a handful of supplies. “Here.” He threw her a few coins, half a loaf of bread and a strip of dried meat.

Fil knelt to gather it all quickly, before looking up at them in askance, knowing she was pushing her luck. “Can I have the candle too? It was the last thing my mum gave me…” A few seconds passed before it landed by her with a dull thud.

Fil stood slowly, brushing her dress off and shifting awkwardly. “Is that all you want from me? I have little else to give.”

The two thieves shared a glance, before seeming to come to a silent agreement. “Strip.”

She stood, back to them and pulled her dress off, fingers fumbling with the buttons, standing shivering in her small clothes. Ollie darted forwards, grabbing the dress as the woman pulled a bundle of fabric from her bag, tossing it to Fil. She caught the bundle neatly. The fabric felt rough and cheap, but still sturdy enough.

“You get yourself there safely. We’ll tell the elves you’re going West, but stay out of busy areas if you want to stay safe. And I’ll throw in some advice for free.” She smiled at FIl, as compassionately as someone who’d just robbed her could be. “You still look like you come from money. Dirty your face and muss your hair up. You’ll be less likely to get robbed by the likes of us in future.”

Ollie spoke up too, a last word of advice. “Keep your coins in your boots. People don’t tend to look there.” Then they left, melting into the shadows as Fil shook out the clothes they’d left her with, pulling them on quickly.

There was a worn tunic and a pair of trousers that were scuffed and ripped. They weren’t as warm as her previous clothes, but they were warmer than her underwear, so she put them on quickly, teeth chattering slightly in the cold of the night. She picked her cape from the ground, pulling it on over the top before sliding the little gold she’d been left with into her boots and running her fingers through her hair to mess up her plaits.

Once there was a few streaks of dirt over her face and hands, mud under her fingernails, and her silver hair was dulled with dust she looked into a nearby pond, taking in her appearance.

She truly looked like a homeless urchin now, slightly beaten up with little more to her name than the clothes she stood in. Wiping the remnants of her earlier tears away she shouldered her bag containing the little food she’d been left with and her candle and set off eastwards, destination solid in her mind.


End file.
